Chennai rains: Buses and suburban train services hit

Chennai rains: Buses and suburban train services hit

Chennai rains A section of a major road in Chennai caved in as heavy rain continued to pound the city as also other parts of Tamil Nadu.A huge crater appeared on the road near the Madhya Kailash signal, situated close to IIT Madras, forcing authorities to redirect traffic on the busy stretch.

Waterlogging was also reported in many parts of the city which received upto 6.4 cm of rain till 8:30 this morning over a 12-hour period. Flight operations were also disrupted due to the rain. The Met department has forecast more showers – scattered to very heavy at times – tomorrow in Chennai, northern coastal Tamil Nadu and the interiors following a trough of low pressure southwest of Bay of Bengal.

Schools and colleges remained shut for the second consecutive day in Chennai, Kancheepuram, Tiruvallur and Cuddalore districts due to heavy rain, This is the sixteenth rain holiday for Chennai’s educational institutions which had reopened on Thursday after a two-week break.

Heavy rains lashed parts of Tamil Nadu, including Chennai, and neighbouring Puducherry, disrupting flight movement and leaving several areas inundated.The picture looks no better for Wednesday with the weather office forecasting heavy to very heavy rainfall for Tamil Nadu, especially over the northern districts of Chennai, Tiruvallur and Kancheepuram.

Under its influence, widespread rains are expected across the State on Wednesday, with the possibility of “scattered heavy to isolated very heavy rainfall over coastal districts,” they said.The weather office forecast “isolated extremely heavy rainfall” for Chennai, Kancheepuram and Tiruvallur which have been already been facing the brunt of the northeast monsoon since last month.

Schools, colleges shut

A holiday has been declared on Tuesday for educational institutions in these districts, which have been experiencing heavy downpour, officials said.In Chennai, office-goers found it tough to make it to their workplaces on time with the incessant rains resulting in water-logging in several areas. Many of them opted to travel by state government buses, suburban train services and Metro Rail.

Most roads were left in a damaged state, with motorists finding it hard to negotiate potholes.Flight operations also took a hit due to the inclement weather. Airport officials said one flight, which left Colombo this morning, returned.

Puducherry, which was pounded by rains since last night recorded 15.2 cm rain in the last 24 hours ending 0830 today, disrupting normal life. A holiday was declared for educational institutions.

Suburban services hit

The suburban train services operating between Chennai Beach and Tambaram has been hit due to severe rains in the cities. Suburban trains, which were plying upto Pallavaram, has now been restored upto Tambaram after 3 pm. Train services from Chengalpet and Thirumalpur to Chennai Beach were running slowly, according to railway sources. Chennai Central-Tiruvallur line was disrupted too. MRTS services is functioning normally.